*** UAE most preferred Eid tourist spot of the year | THE DAILY TRIBUNE | KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN

UAE most preferred Eid tourist spot of the year

Manama

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) received the lion share of travellers from the Kingdom this Eid Al Adha, as Dubai proved to be the favourite tourist spot among Bahrainis, according to various travel agents in Bahrain.

Agents said travel fare and proximity helped Dubai edge out Istanbul, Thailand and the GCC countries to become the top pick this year. 

According to Oscar Travels and Tours General Manager Mohammed Moizuddin Khan, UAE is preferred as it is more family-oriented than places such as Bangkok. 

He added the trend was common only among Bahrainis as most expats travelled to their homelands during the vacation.

Manama-based Travel Agent Muneer agreed to this trend and said, “Many destinations that fare very well during other times, did not attract many Bahrainis during Eid. For example, Thailand is a popular destination during summer holidays but not during Eid. This is mainly because the Eid vacation is short,” he said. 

“Dubai manages to consistently attract Bahrainis. It is also marketed in the right way and the hospitality industry there is phenomenal,” another travel agent said. 

However, Muhanna Travels Senior Manager Ibrahim Muhanna said all GCC countries were preferred equally by Bahrainis with UAE and Dubai doing only fractionally better than the rest. 

“I won’t say that Dubai dominated in any way. In fact, I believe all GCC countries had an almost equal share of visitors during Eid. Bahrain also had a good number of visitors and the hotels in Bahrain were fully occupied,” he said.